from Joe Henderson of the Tampa Tribune,

You can argue that many things are more important to a city than the presence of high-profile sports teams. Good schools, job opportunities, public safety, a decent transportation system, they’re all vital to a community’s well-being.

Point conceded.

Still, those don’t bring people together in public celebration and purpose the way the Tampa Bay Lightning just did. They don’t turn strangers into friends the way a Lightning blue T-shirt could. They don’t keep you in front of the TV late at night, your fingers dug into the sides of your chair.

And they don’t cause people to stand sweat-soaked in Tampa’s summertime sauna, the way 300 or more did Tuesday afternoon to welcome the Bolts back from Chicago at the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Final. The Lightning lost in six games to the Chicago Blackhawks, but they were greeted by chanting, cheering fans and signs that said things like “Hold Your Heads Up!”

Name something else that could cause an estimated 19,000 fans to come to Amalie Arena on Monday night to watch the game on the mammoth scoreboard. That was nearly double the crowd the Tampa Bay Rays drew for a home game about 20 miles away in St. Petersburg, and that raises a question Tampa and the surrounding area have grappled with for years: Are these teams worth the cost?

A point needs to be made up front about the economic impact big-time sports has on a community: ‘Tis a trifle.

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